Combustion apparatus



@gmk 24'. 1925.' 1,530,831

J. w. JOHNSON .connusnon APPARATUS rma auw 2s. mz3` 2 sums-snm. 1

Patented Mar. 24, 1925.

UNITEDl sTAr/Es y'11.6.1115'.NT 4 oFF l-,ssasxi ics. y

JACK w. JOHNSON, orA CHICAGO', ILLINOIS, AssIGNOB. ro/MCKEL OIL'HEAT Coivn PANY, or CHICAGO, ILLINOrs, A CORPORATION/or ILLINOIS.-

Appncaf'ipn'fnedi.nay-23,19%. serial. N. 653,400.

To all whom 'it muy coacernf .Be it known that I, JACK IV. Joi-iNsoN, n citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook' and Slate of Illinois, have invented a new and use ful Improvement in Combustion Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.-

My invention relates, more particularly, to combustion apparatus for producing heat or illuminationfrom liquid hydrocarbon of any suitable character as the fuel.

Certain of'my objects arcto pro-vide for the conditioning of the hydrocarbon liquid to the end that it shall be rendered of maximum eihciency in heating and lighting to avoid the formation of free carbon; and to provide a combustion apparatus which, while compact and of slnall size, shall be capable of producing large volumes of the combustible mixture and by which widely varying volumes of such mixture may be caused toA How to the point of ignition under accurate and minute control and, if desired, the flow be maintained continuously throughout the varying of the volume of the mixture under control.

Referring tothe accompanying drawings: Figure'l is a plan view of combustion apparatus constructed-in accordance with my.

inventiongand Figure 2, an enlarged sec tion taken at the line 2-2 on Fig. 1 and viewed 1n the 'direction of the arrow.

'As a preface to the` following description,

it may be stated thatmy inventionI` in its broadest aspect as to vone phase thereof, involves the subjection of the liquid hydrocarbon, constituting` the fuel to be used, together with a carbureting material,` as, for example,

air, to a suction action and' an action operating to force the mixture of the liquid and .carbureting material, from the point where suction is exerted, to the point at which theI mixture is to be ignited.

Inasmuch as I have devised myinvention more particularly for .the heat-producing purpose, I have illustrated ift in this connection, the particular construction shown comprising avva uum pump 3, which may be of any desirabl construction, but which is preferably of the rotary positive vacuum compression type, this pump being shown as driven by an electric motor 4 mounted on a base 5 supporting the pump 8. The suctioninlet of the pump 3 is shown as connected with a pipe 6 which opens into the outlet of a. carburetor 7, which latter may bef of Vany desirable type to which the liquid hydro carbon, constituting the fuel,` is' supplied through a pipe 8froin any suitable source thereof.' The carbureter shown is provided with an air-control valve. controllable through the medium of a. lever 9 as is usual in carbureters, and with a .lever 10 connected with the throttle valve (not shown) of the carbureter, in accordance with common practice, this leverl being shown as provided with the divergent arms 11 and 12 cooperating with fa stop .pin 13 on the carburetor.

The compression-outlet of thc pump .is connected with a pipe 14 which opens into an annular chamber 15- provided in the hollow ring 16. forming a` part of the burner,l the ring 16 being mounted on a base member 17 which is so shaped as-to afford a receptacle 18' below1 the ring 16 and disposed concentrically thereof, the receptacle 18 communicating with a pipe 19 which opens through the bottomoi the receptacle and is provided for a purpose 'hereinafter described.- The bottom wall of the chamber 16, at a point diametrically opposed to the pipe 14, contains a recess 2O into which'the lower end of a Venturi tube 21, secured at' its upper end in an opening 22 in the top wall of the ring 16, extends, the upper end of the Venturi tube communicating with the lower end of an upwardly-extending pipe 23, the upper extremity of which is of downwardly curved form to discharge downwardly, the burner being provided, directly in vertical line. with the outlet ofthe pipe and below the latter,

with av spreader-plate 24 concentric with the outlet of the pipe 23 and supported on a the ring 16.

In the operation ofthe apparatus the pump 3 which is rapidlydri've'n by the motor 4, exerts suction on the outlet of the carbureter 7, with the result of`causing the liquid hydrocarbon, supplied thereto through the pipe 8, and the carbureting air, to be drawn from the carbureter into the pump from which it is forcibly ejected through the pipe' 14 into the chamber l5 and thence thro-ughthe Venturi tube 21 and tube 23, discharging downwardly from the latter at which the mixture is ignited, the plate 24 serving to deflect the burning gases laterally in all directions. The arrangement of the parts is such, as shown, that the .flameprodueedby light is avoided.

crank pin 27 'the burning mixture discharging from the pipe 23 impinges against the ring 16 heating the mixture-contents thereof sufiiciently to gasify the same. .v

It will be understood that the apparatus shown serves very eiiectually to produce `ain intimate mixture of the liquid hydrocarbon and the carbureting material in its passage to' the outlet or the course through which it travels, it being noted that the hydrocarbon and the carbureting material is not only subjected toa mixing 'action in the car- Vvbureter wherein the hydrocarbon is vaporiZed, but also by a. very lthorough mixing action produced by the vacuum pump, whichr action is augmentejdfby further mixing action which takes place before the mixture .in gaseous form issues from the pipe 253 and in its passage to which latter the gas is caused to expand' in the chamber 15 and ralso in the Venturi tube 21, the location of the latter relative to the recess -20 insuring against the accumulation, in the chamberl, of such or the hydrocarbon as may become liquefied therein.

' It will be understood froml the foregoing that the flow of combustible mixture from the pipe 23 may be accurately controlled, as through the medium of the throttle lever 10, the variations of how obtainable by the apparatus being of very great range.

This feature of the apparatus is of especial.

importance when the apparatus is used as a heating medium, as, for example, forboilers, furnaces and the like, as a flow or combustible mixture to the point or ignition may be maintained at all times, varied in volume, as desired, and thus the use or a pllot In the use or the apparatus, where temperature control is desired, as for example where the apparatus is used Jfor heating a building, any suitable thcrmostatic controlling means may be provided, the construction shown involving such a means ,ror controlling the ow of combustible mixture to the pipe 23 through the `medium of the throttle lever 10. The thermostatic means shown 'comprise a lever 26 pivoted at one end to the end of the throttle lever 1() opposite thatv provided with the legs 12 and pivotally connected at its opposite end, to a secured to a disk 28 mounted on a shaft 29 journaled in a case 30 which latter may contain any suitable mechanism for rotating the disk 28 and thereby varying the opening of the valve controlled by the lever 10 ,responsive to changes in temperav ture, as, for example, vin a room the temperature of which is controlled through the medium of the burner apparatus.

In the starting or the burner it is preferred that the partsthereof supported on the base 17 be prelimii'iarily heated, and this 'may be provided for in any desirable way, as for example by providing an annulus 31 of wicking in the basin portion 18 of the base, for impregnationwith any suitable inflammable liquid.

` 'The pipe 19 is provided for the purpose of .conveying from the basin 18 any liquid hydrocarbon which may collect therein.

While I have illustrated and described a particular construction embodying my invention, I do not wish to be understood as \intending to limit it thereto as the same may be variously modified and altered without departing from the spirit of the invention and the invention may be practiced by em-' I ploying other forms of apparatus. What I claim as new, and desire by' LettersPatents, is:

1. In combustion 4apparatus, thecombination of a pump, means for causing liquid hydrocarbon and a carbureting material, to

to secure enter said pump, and a conduit `through y which the mixture passes from the pump to the point at which it is to be ignited, said` conduit containing an. enlargement between its ends, forming an expansion chamber, and a venturi.

2. In combustion apparatus, the combinaconduit containing an enlargement, forming an expansion chamber with its bottom wall containing a recess, and an upwardly-extending venturi with its lower end disposed at said recess.

JACK W. JOHNSON. 

